Axinite-(Fe)

Unknown Owner

The mountainous area around Bourg d'Oisans in Isère, Rhône-Alpes, France is the all-time classic area for the beautiful mineral Axinite - where the first high quality crystals were found, way back in the late 1700s. Of course, Axinite is now a group name, and most of the crystals from Bourg d'Oisans are Axinite-(Fe). This large thumbnail specimen consists of a single, well-formed, bladed crystal of Axinite-(Fe), 13 mm tall, on a small piece of rock matrix mounted on a cylindrical acrylic base for display. The crystal has lovely sharp edges, in-keeping with its name - as 'axe-shaped'. The colour is good too: a nice deep clove brown, with good transparency.